Manectric, The Discharge Pokémon. It discharges electricity from its mane. It creates a thundercloud overhead to drop lightning bolts. It is said to nest where lightning has fallen. Because lightning falls in their vicinities, it was thought to have been born from lightning.The sparks sometimes ignite forest fires.

Overview

Nice Speed, nice Special Attack. Manectric can hit pretty hard and pretty fast. Sadly, this is all it can do. Manectric is really predictable, standard special attacking Electric type. However, it has great coverage on its moves which makes it hard for most things to switch in safely. If you want a strong NU or UU special attacking force, Manectric is a Pokémon to seriously consider.

105 Speed, 105 Special Attack. Manectric is begging for a Choice set. Thunderbolt is the most obvious move for Manectric, especially on a set that relies on both power and accuracy. It is the most reliable move with a strong base power Manectric has access to, and it should be abused. Flamethrower is there for the Pokémon that would take Thunderbolt well. The bulky Grass types and Steel types are destroyed when they switch into a Flamethrower, which means one less Pokémon to resist Thunderbolt. Hidden Power [Grass] ruins any Rock/Ground and Water/Ground types that like to switch into Thunderbolt due to the immunity. Switcheroo is an interesting move. Even though you lose a lot of Special Attack or Speed, depending on your Choice item, you can potentially ruin a Special Wall, which means no reliable counter for Manectric for your opponent.

Choice Specs or Choice Scarf really depends on whether you want Manectric hitting really hard or working as a revenge killer and late game sweeper. Both items work well, it all depends on what you want Manectric to do.

Charge Beam is obviously the focus of this set, as it gives Manectric a semi-reliable way of increasing its already nice Special Attack. It should be used on a switch, which, with a little luck, leaves Manectric with a +1 in Special Attack for the Pokémon that just switched in. Thunderbolt is the bread and butter of the set. It is strong, accurate and has STAB. There are no downsides. After Charge Beam gives you the boost, Thunderbolt will be the main sweeping move. Flamethrower ruins the Grass and Steel types in NU and UU, and is a great move in general. Hidden Power [Grass] removes the Electric immune Ground types from the table, as many of them are paired with Rock or Water typing. This gives Manectric near perfect coverage to beat its most obvious counters.

Life Orb is the item of choice due to the 1.3x boost you get from it. The downside is the 10% recoil, which Manectric finds hard to take due to frail defences. This is where Expert Belt becomes an option. Although it gives a less powerful blow to the opponent, 1.2x damage on a super effective hit is not bad, especially when looking at how many types Manectric hits with this set. Another good effect with Expert Belt is that you can bluff the Choice Specs set, which will keep Special Walls away thanks to a fear of Switcheroo.

EVs and Nature:

Choice
Max Special Attack, max Speed all the way. Manectric is too frail to bother investing into its defences and it isn't using its Attack stat. The only way Manectric should be used is max Special Attack and Speed.

Charge Beam
Same deal with the Choice set. Max Special Attack and Speed. Manectric is an offensive powerhouse, and its EVs should be used to maximise its potential.

Other Options

Rain Dance, Thunder, Howl, Magnet Rise, Signal Beam

Rain Dance can be used to support teammates as well as provide Manectric with a more power Electric attack to work with.

Thunder should only be used on a Rain Dance team. Otherwise, it is unreliable and not as good as Thunderbolt.

Howl could be used in a gimmicky physical set with Spark, Fire Fang, Crunch, Ice Fang and other physical moves Manectric has. Sadly, most of the moves are underpowered and, looking at Manectric's Attack stat, underpowered moves are not what it wants.

Magnet Rise is an option as it stops Manetric's only weakness from hitting it. This means Manectric takes less damage, which results in surviving longer, therefore dealing more damage.

Signal Beam is useful for hurting any Psychic types a little more than Thunderbolt would. It gives an alternative to Flamethrower for hurting Grass Pokémon. This should without a doubt be used if you ever decide to use Manectric in OU, as it wrecks Celebi.

Countering Manectric

Chansey is without a doubt the best counter. It will take special hits all day, Manectric can't do anything. Bulky Grass types work well, aside from Flamethrower. Stuff like Meganium works well, as long as you avoid Flamethrower. Cradily works especially well, as, thanks to its Rock typing, Flamethrower is only neutral. Lanturn is immune to Thunderbolt, and isn't 2HKOed by Hidden Power [Grass], whilst being able to hit back with a strong Surf. Ground types are immune to Manectric's strongest attack and can ruin it with an Earthquake. Quagsire, Golem, Gastrodon and Claydol all work really well, if they don't take Hidden Power [Grass]. Other Pokémon worth mentioning are ones that aren't weak to Electric but have insane Special Wall potential. Probopass, Bastiodon, Muk, Hypno and Grumpig can all take special hits like champions, even though they don't resist Electric.

Manectric has had a few Animé Appearences. First, Wattson used one in his rematch against Ash. After that, Noland showed his off to Ash to help Ash decide on his opponent. Centuries before that, Marcus used several, among other Pokémon, to try and defeat Arceus